The curriculum development workshop was designed to introduce participants to gender concepts and relevant discussions. Two gender modules on social protection and social policy were also covered to showcase how gender perspectives could be integrated in to exiting courses in the program. Participants then analyzed case studies and did exercises to understand and translate the theoretical concepts from the introductory sessions to grassroots Myanmar context. In addition, needs assessment was done on research capacity building to help design future workshops and group research project plans.
YUE has started a course on gender and development under its Master’s on Development Studies Program in 2018. The course targets working professionals on development, and provides basic concepts on gender analysis. The course content has been developed by SEGRI with the support of AIT.
Lecturers: Khin Zar Naing (SEGRI); Sanda Thant (SEGRI); Moe Hnin Phyu (YUE) Guest lecturers: Joyee Chatterjee (AIT), Kyoko Kusakabe (AIT)
Dr. Khin Thida Nyein, Dr. Thida Htay, Daw May Zin Oo, Daw Khin Mar Cho
Dr. Khin Thida Nyein, Dr. Thida Htay, Daw May Zin Oo, Daw Khin Mar Cho
Daw Thin Thin Daw Yi Yi Win Daw Ei Cherry Lin Daw Moe Hnin Phyu
Cho Cho Thein, Khin Thu Thu Thein, Htoo May, Hnin Yu Swe, Phyu Phyu Kyaw Myint
Gender differences in civic engagement among youth of Yangon University of Economics
Ko Aung Ko Ko, Ko Myo Win Tin, Ei Ei Phyo, Zin Zin Moe Nyi, Benjamin Thulaw Phaw
As part of GDS-AIT’s engagement in increasing the capacity of students and lecturers at YUE, AIT has offered opportunities for them to complete either certificate degrees or full master’s degrees.
Joint Supervision Students
Health equity from gender perspective in the internal migrant population
Factors influencing on modern contraceptive use among HIV positive women in Yangon region
Socioeconomic impact of health financing strategy for pregnant women in Chin state
Resource Persons
Gender inclusion concerns have been widespread among organizations working for Myanmar’s humanitar- ian and social development after cyclone Nargis hit the country in 2008. The number of women’s organizations is growing, and there is increasing momentum within the organizations to promote gender equality in programming and advocacy for women’s rights. In 2013, in collab- oration with the United Nations Gender Theme Group and Gender Equality Network, the gov- ernment committed to promote and protect wom- en’s rights by formulating the National Strategic Plan for the Advancement of Women (NSPAW). A gender situation analysis was conducted in 2016 as a baseline for the NSPAW.
With growing focus on gender issues, develop- ment organizations and the ministries concerned have launched several gender-related develop- ment initiatives, including gender awareness train- ing, projects on Gender Based Violence (GBV), gender mainstreaming, gender in project cycle management, gender budgeting, gender analysis. The dissemination of the contents of the UN’s Convention on Eliminations of All Forms of Dis- crimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda has also been implemented. Two local organizations, the Gender Academy and Myanmar Institute of Gender Studies (MIGS), offer customized gender certificate courses mainly focused on WPS and project cycle management. Academic institutes such as the Department of Economics from Yan- gon University of Economics and the Myanmar Institute of Theology offer gender courses. De- velopment partners and organizations including the UN have emphasized more advocacy works on gender, ranging from community-level to gov- ernment entities and Parliament.
Despite this progress, challenges exist, as gender inequality has not been historically rec- ognized as an issue for development in Myan- mar. Being under the military regime for decades (1962-2010), research in Myanmar is underdevel- oped, and there is limited or no data/information available across sectors. The education system under the military regime did not encourage, and in fact even hindered analytical thinking; thus, research capacity and analytical skill have been critically neglected. Deep-rooted social norms and gendered cultures/traditions call for better understanding and in-depth analysis of gender, but there are not enough studies to provide suf- ficient basis for policy discussion. While there is growing focus on and increasing efforts toward gender equality and women’s empowerment, the existing resources (both gender experts and mate- rial support) are insufficient, and the analysis tend to be superficial and lack depth. It often follows existing discourses without contextualizing the analysis, hence invites the wrong criticism that gender equality is a foreign concept. Perceiving gender as merely a women’s issue, just adding women into project interventions, without engag- ing in meaningful gender integration or in-depth analysis of power relations, lead to tackling gen- der in a superficial way. It is, therefore, crucial to have a wider and in-depth understanding of gender and development at all levels: individual, family, organizations, community, and the state.
Based on the realization that the lack of in- depth gender analysis stems from the lack of academic training on gender analysis, the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) and The Yangon University of Economics (YUE)signed a Memo- randum of Understanding (MOU) to cooperate on a series of activities to build gender analysis pacity among the faculty members/ research staff and students of Yangon University of Econom- ics (YUE) in Myanmar. The Socio-Economic & Gender Resource Institute (SEGRI) of Myanmar has played a catalyst role to follow up on AIT’s inputs to YUE, and monitored and mentored the YUE researchers on daily basis. The key areas of cooperation are: 1) Capacity building of YUE faculty members/ research staff on gender analy- sis (building gender research capacity, conducting micro research, studying gender-related master’s and certificate courses at AIT); and 2) Joint su- pervision of YUE master’s students in 2018 and 2019. In 2020, due to the global Covid-19 outbreak, progress was slow, however, the twin goals of finalizing micro research and joint supervision were carried out virtually.
The initial plan was to develop a gender and development curriculum at YUE to equip stu- dents with theoretical knowledge on gender, and development and analytical skills from feminist perspectives. However, it is difficult to change the curriculum (especially to add a new concept such as gender), as universities, including YUE, are not autonomous in Myanmar, and the curriculum is controlled by the Ministry of Education.
Hence, the YUE and AIT took a different ap- proach. With the financial support of IDRC and in collaboration with SEGRI, they laid down an en- vironment supportive of building gender capacity at YUE. They conducted two workshops in YUE, and subsequently developed a new Gender and Development course as discussed below.
The first workshop “Integrating Gender into the Existing Curriculum and Building Research Capacity” was organized at YUE in February 2018. Its aim was to gain familiarity with gen- der concepts and the relevant discussions around these concepts, to offer gender modules on so- cial protection and social policy, and to discuss training needs for research capacity building. The workshop covered both concepts and practical issues with regard to gender and development, gender and social policy, gender and social pro- tection, and the challenges that women and men face in ensuring social protection in Myanmar. The workshop was attended by YUE lecturers and some graduate students. These lecturers were expected to incorporate gender issues in their course content with technical assistance from AIT faculty members.
The second workshop “Capacity Building for Qualitative Methods in Gender Research” in June 2018, gave YUE faculty members and teaching staff a better understanding of gender issue and exposed them to qualitative research methods. These faculty members formed small groups to conduct gender research on the topic of their choice, with technical support and guidance from AIT, YUE and SEGRI.
It was around this time that the YUE professor in charge of this project got a promotion as head of department for the Department of Economics that has been offering a professional post-graduate programme “Executive Master’s in Development Studies (EMDevS)”. This professor, through the project activities, realized the importance of gen- der integration for sustainable development. Her commitment moved the Rector of YUE as well, and together, they were able to create a space for a Gender and Development (GAD) course in the YUE’s Executive Master’s in Development Stud- ies (EMDevS) programme in September 2018. Considering the fact that YUE is a public univer- sity, creating a new course is a sheer demonstra- tion of their political will and determination to es- tablish a gender and development course at YUE. SEGRI developed the course content and grading system, with technical support from AIT faculty members.
The EMDevS programme targets working professionals in the field of development, and de- velopment practitioners from public institutions, the private sector, and management levels from development fields (e.g., United Nations, Interna- tional Non-Government Organizations, Civil So- ciety Organizations). The curriculum focuses on economic and development-related topics such as economic principles, different development seg- ments, development economics, political econ- omy, rural development, international trade, hu- man resource development, SME development, gender and development, public policy and ad- ministration, environmental and natural resource economics, public finance, international finance and aid, and strategic management.
The EMDevS programme’s gender and devel- opment (GAD) course is based on academic and theoretical discussions, together with academic papers review, supported by guidance and close coordination by AIT faculty members. The GAD course mainly used the International Develop- ment Research Centre (IDRC)’s book “Theoret- ical Perspectives on Gender and Development”, and six academic papers for individual reviews and group exercises.
To understand the GAD course better, it is useful to look at the IDRC book and how it was utilised in the course, in greater detail. The first three chapters of the book discuss the importance of theory in influencing conventional thought, and helps students look at issues from a feminist perspective. It questions traditional assumptions and challenges mainstream theorizing. Looking at gender issues in different eras, and their policy implications, help to better understand sustain- able development as a model for societal trans- formation. The historical context explains how development and feminist frameworks intersect- ed to become the competing frameworks Women in Development (WID) and Gender and Devel- opment (GAD). In addition, the chapters desen- sitize the concept of ‘feminism’ as it is wrongly interpreted in Myanmar. The next two chapters deliver key gender concepts using examples in a Myanmar context, which make for better under- standing and inspire students to carry out further gender research. Questions about “why women” in development projects/programmes and public policies, are answered using the WID policies of international development institutions, ‘engen- dering’ as a concept of human development, and key features of WID and GAD.
The students were given six academic papers for review and discussion covering (1) Global- ization, (2) the Equality Debate, (3) Sustainable Development, (4) Gender Poverty and Inequality, (5) Unpaid Work and the Economy, and (6) Gen- der Issues in Urban Areas. The course and the dis- cussions were not only useful for the students by creating a space for sharing views but also pro- vided an effective way to influence policies mak- ers and practitioners on the importance of gender equality. Most of the students are either middle management officials from different government departments, or mid- to senior-level development practitioners from international and civil soci- ety organizations. They have rich experience in supporting policy formulation, project and pro- gramme implementation and management, and a high-level awareness of economic development in the globalization era. Therefore, the course (which was a required course for the professional master’s students) provided an excellent opportu- nity to sensitize these students.
At the same time, the teaching experience of the SEGRI faculty revealed that gender and development concepts and discussions are per- ceived differently by different students. Many students from government departments have a limited understanding of gender and some have negative views on the issue. The students from the private sector mostly perceive gender as not an issue. Those from international organizations and civil society organizations have high accep- tance of gender equality, but weaker practical and contextual understanding. In order to capture the concept of gender and gender equality, it is im- portant not to label the idea before debating on it or thinking through the concept. It is often the case that students label ‘feminism’ as ‘extrem- ism that focuses exclusively on women’s issues’, shunning any further discussion. However, those who are more open and willing to debate appre- ciated the concept, since it gave them alternative ways of thinking. Historical alternative approach- es to women and development, and theoretical concepts help the development practitioners and policy makers better understand the gender issues and provide a link between theory and practice through country-specific policy/programme ex- amples from different fields of development.
It is important to note that without such debate and open-mindedness and critical thinking and analytical attitudes, it is difficult to be engaged in gender analysis. It was not only the lack of outside information that stifled gender analysis during the former military regime, but also the lack of en- couragement of critical thinking that prohibited gender analysis to grow.
Hence concerns ran high when the military coup occurred in February 2021. The military coup has not only set back the country’s progress but also worsened the country’s economy, already suffering from the pandemic in 2020. Nation- wide protests in Myanmar, known locally as the ‘Spring Revolution’, have started since the coup, using non-violent forms of demonstration. One of these is a powerful strike called the Civil Dis- obedience Movement (CDM), whose adherents are refusing to return to work and demanding the military return power to the elected government; a broad range of professions, led by medical and healthcare workers, teachers, railway workers, truck drivers, engineers, bankers, lawyers, and civil servants from government departments have joined the strike. Although there is no data avail- able on how many staffers from government enti- ties have joined CDM, almost all public services and offices have been rendered unable to operate. International organizations including United Na- tions agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) are also protesting the coup by practicing non-en- gagement with the government ministries and de- partments currently under military control. Uni- versities were closed, and the capacity building project with AIT/YUE was halted as well as the GAD course at YUE.
The military re-opened universities in May 2021 for doctoral courses, master’s studies, and final-year undergraduate students, partly to show the world that the country is functioning normal- ly. However, only a few students in some univer- sities attended, many universities saw no student attendance. There is no information available on whether master’s studies at YUE is continuing, and whether we can revive the GAD course at all. Even if the GAD course is revived, will the uni- versity encourage critical thinking that promotes diversity and equality? Can we still teach GAD that promotes women’s rights and empowerment under the military regime? The achievements have owed much to various people’s commit- ments and contributions. All these might go to waste if the country’s democracy is not restored.
Joint Supervision Students
Health equity from gender perspective in the internal migrant population
Factors influencing on modern contraceptive use among HIV positive women in Yangon region
Socioeconomic impact of health financing strategy for pregnant women in Chin state
Resource Persons
3-A, Shwe Kainiyi Housing, Nanattaw Street, Ward 7, Kamayut Township, Yagon, Myanmar
Tel : 01 505 340
Mobile : 09 25311 9266
Email : info@segrimyanmar.com
Website : www.segrimyanmar.com
